Graduate School Bulletin

As this year comes to an end, I would like to say thanks to all who have helped enhance graduate education at Virginia Tech! Our progress is a collective effort and I’m pleased with our accomplishments. So, thanks!

As usual, I’ve included some announcements and updates in this monthly memo. Please share this information with faculty, staff and students in your department.

Commencement is a very special event for our graduate students and the university. This year we will introduce some new features including recognition of the recipients of official graduate certificates, performance of an original musical composition celebrating commencement, and visual reflections on the year. Please encourage graduate students, faculty and staff to attend.

Announcements

• Graduate Commencement will be held on May 14 at 3:00pm in Cassell Coliseum.
• Northern Virginia Center Ceremony will be held May 15 at 8:00pm at George Mason University.
• Graduate Congressional Fellowship available to work in Congressman Boucher’s office. Please send nominations to Dr. Roger Avery.

Reminder: International Students must be accepted by May 15, 2004 (see March memo).

An addition to the Banner report, SYRB601, allows departments to review and sort the list of applications that are still waiting for a decision. The report provides a data file that you can pull into an Excel file so that you can sort the data by student name, ID, campus, application status and citizenship status. A recently run report showed that there were more than 2000 international applications for Fall 2004 that were waiting for decision at various departments. Please run and review this report and make sure that the admission analysis forms for all international students you wish to accept for Fall 2004 are returned to the Graduate School by May 15, 2004. If you need assistance with how to run the report, please contact

Zelma Harris.

The application fee is good for one academic year. A new application fee will be charged to students who wish to defer their admission for a year or more (e.g., defer from Fall 2004 to Fall 2005).

Recent actions of the Commission on Graduate Study & Policies (CGS&P) & University Council

• Doctoral candidates must have an advisory committee of at least four faculty members (change from 5 members to minimum of 4).
• Minimum Master’s degree requirements have been changed as follows. Please note that departmental requirements have not changed and in many instances, departmental requirements will exceed the minimum.

	Minimum Total Graduate Credits	Minimum Graded Graduate Credits	Minimum Research Hours
Thesis	30	201 (12 credits of 5000-level or higher)	6
Non-Thesis	30	242 (15 credits of 5000-level or higher)

¹A maximum of 12 credits in 4000-level courses (approved for graduate credit) and 6 credits total in 5974, 5984 and 6984 courses.
²A maximum of 9 credits in 4000-level courses (approved for graduate credit) and 9 credits total in 5974, 5984 and 6984 courses.

• New wording for requirements for second Master’s degrees as follows:
  

  The requirements for a second master’s degree are the same as for the first master’s degree: an additional 30-54 hours, depending upon the degree sought. A student working on a second master’s degree may transfer up to 50% of appropriate courses (see the section entitled ‘Transfer Credit’).

• Addition of description of the manuscript format for presenting thesis or dissertation. The body matter for a manuscript format will vary but generally contains the chapters of the thesis or dissertation, in logical order, each with its own title. Chapter titles may include: Introduction, Literature Review, Chapters 1+ (Title, Abstract, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion & Conclusions), Overall conclusion, Data summary, Overall model if appropriate (text or illustration if appropriate), Bibliography and Appendices (if needed).
• For the Department of Accounting and Information Systems (ACIS), the current identification for graduate degrees were changed from General Business, Accounting (GBUA) to Business, Accounting and Information Systems (BACIS)
• For the Department of Business Information Technology (BIT), the current identification for graduate degrees was changed from Business Management Science (BMSC) to Business, Business Information Technology (BBIT).

Working with SYRB601 Report in Banner

• In the initial Banner screen, type syrb601, and enter. This will open a Process Control Submission Form.
• Click in the box below Printer, and the word ‘webdist’ should pop up.
• Click in the box called Values, and yellow highlighting should appear, with three categories in the right column—Site Code, Major Code and Term Code.
• In the Site Code box, type which campus you want to review. In Major code, type in your Major Code. In the Term code, type in the relevant term, for ex., 200409.
• Click in the bottom box marked Submission, and make sure the radio button next to Submit is marked.
• Last, click on the Save icon in the toolbar. The screen should blip, and then a message should appear in the bottom left hand corner, with Log file: syrb601_XXXXXXX.log List file: syrb601_XXXXXXXX.lis. (The X represents a number value.)

You will get an email message in your mailbox called Report Dist., with a hyperlink embedded.

• Click on the link, and a page will pop up in your browser from Information Systems and Computing.
• There should be 4 boxes in the top third of the page—Extract-lad, Report-lis, Status-log, and Status- Logsqr. Under Extract, click on Save.
• Save the file to your desktop—you can rename it at this point if you wish. The Save File Type As should show as Text File. The file extension will show as .lad.
• Open a new Excel workbook, and click on File/Open.
• Find the file that you want to convert to Excel, and click on it, then click Open.
• An instruction wizard will open to walk through the process.
• Click Delimited as file type, and enter the number of the row that will begin your file under Start at Row 1, then click Next.
• In the next screen, click to uncheck Tab and click to check Other. In the box next to Other, enter a vertical line (Shift+ key, above the Enter key). This should show how the file will look in Excel. Everything should line up ok, and if it looks fine, then click Next.
• If the info still looks ok, then click Finish, and the information should pop into your Excel file. You may need to widen some columns and make others smaller, but the basic information should appear in a workable format.
• Save the entire file at this time, and make sure it is saved as Excel Workbook.
• To sort the data, click in the box next to the Header Line. This should highlight the first line. Go to Data/Filter and click on Auto Filter. This will place arrows at the top of each column. Click on the arrow in the column for which you wish to view sort choices. For example, click on Citizenship, choose N, and this will show all non-immigrant international students with outstanding files for your department. If you click on Status, then Out to Department, it will sort and show all files that you need to review.
• To undo the sort, go back to the top arrow, and choose ALL.

Announcements

• Graduate Commencement will be held on May 14, at 3:00pm, in Cassell Coliseum. This year we will introduce some new features including recognition of the recipients of official graduate certificates, performance of an original musical composition celebrating commencement, and visual reflections on the year. Please encourage graduate students, faculty and staff to attend.
• Northern Virginia Center Ceremony will be held May 15, at 8:00pm, at George Mason University. Please share this information with faculty, staff and students.
• The next Dialogue with the Graduate Dean will be held on April 7, 2004 (place to be determined). The tentative topic is Balancing Work-Life in Graduate School.

Deadlines for International Students

The Fall 2004 deadline to accept international students residing outside the United States is May 15. Since the visa application process may take 3-4 months, we must allow sufficient time for students to make all their arrangements. International students are expected to arrive in Blacksburg no later than August 16 and participate in the mandatory international student orientation on August 19.

Departments may request an exception for specific individuals by contacting the immigration advisors (Zelma Harris or Ruth Athanson) in the Graduate School. Decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis after evaluating the applicant’s chances of getting the immigration paperwork and visa in time to arrive by August 16.

Reminder: Evaluation of the Progress of Graduate Students

The University Council approved a revision to the Annual Progress Review process (Presidential Policy #229). Please utilize this policy in developing and implementing departmental guidelines for conducting annual progress reviews for your graduate students. I also encourage you to incorporate the opportunity for graduate students to read, review and respond to these reviews. It is important that you conduct these reviews annually and share the results with the Graduate School. The Graduate School would like to have a copy of your guidelines – please send a copy to Roger Avery by July 1, 2004.

Work-Life Grants

The Graduate School in collaboration with the College Deans and the Provost has established a Work-Life grant program to provide temporary financial assistance to departments to continue support for female graduate students during pregnancy. This grant program is a result of conversations with concerned graduate students and recommendations from the ADVANCE Pipeline Element working group chaired by Nancy Love (CEE). A description of the program is attached.

Health Insurance Plan and Subsidy

We continue to work with Fred Weaver and GM-Southwest regarding the health insurance plan for graduate students. An open forum for graduate students with Jim Payne (GM-Southwest) will be held April (get information from GSA website)… Please encourage your graduate students to attend. The health insurance subsidy will increase for next year but the exact amount is not yet known.

Recent actions of the Commission on Graduate Study & Policies (CGS&P) & University Council

CGS&P approved the document entitled “Building Graduate Community: Expectations for Graduate Education at Virginia Tech” with editorial changes. The document has also received approval from CSA and the Faculty Senate. Commission of Research is currently reviewing the document. Once all input is received, the document will be made available on the Graduate School webpage.

Graduate School Efforts

• CollegeNet update: The time to submit modifications to the supplementary forms is here. Letters have been sent, via email, to all departments asking for updates.
• Decision posting on the web: Applicants can now see decisions about admissions via the web. This information is provided to better communicate with our applicants. The decision letters sent by post continue to be the official communication. This action is effective immediately.

Work-Life Grants: Maternity

During their time in Graduate School, students routinely face issues of balance among the demands of work (GA, GTA, GRA), graduate study and personal life. Potentially, one of the most important life issues faced by female graduate students is pregnancy. In demonstrating its commitment to be work-life friendly, Virginia Tech needs to provide a supportive environment for female graduate students (and partners) in their choice to give birth while simultaneously acknowledging the department’s need for continuation of the work being provided by the graduate student as a GTA, GRA, or GA.

To this end, the Graduate School has created a program entitled Work-Life Grants through which departments can request temporary financial assistance. Specifically, departments can request financial assistance equivalent to a stipend for 6 weeks. The Graduate School will provide ½ of the 6-week stipend and the College Dean will provide the other ½ of the 6-week stipend. This matching program, work-life grants can provide sufficient resources to the department to find a temporary solution/replacement for the work being conducted by the pregnant graduate student on assistantship (GA, GTA, GRA) while simultaneously continuing her assistantship.

As the situation arises, please submit your request in writing to the Dean of the Graduate School and copied to the College Dean. These requests will be acted upon immediately. The program is effective immediately.

Reminders/Announcements

• Please continue to work within your college for proposals for inclusion on the ’04-’05 Institutional Plan for Graduate Degrees (IPGD). College selected proposals are due at the Graduate School by March 15th.
• Please check your web pages to make sure that all links and information is up to date.
• Graduate Education week is March 22-26. Please send us a list of your departmental events so that we can include them on the master calendar.
• 9th Annual Graduate Preview Weekend is scheduled for February 28 – March 1, 2004.

Graduate Alumni Achievement Award

Last year, the Graduate School and Alumni Association developed the Graduate Alumni Achievement Award. The first award went to Robert C. Richardson (BS ’58, MS ’60 in Physics). I am pleased to announce that Harold L. Martin, Sr. (PhD in EE ’80), Chancellor of Winston-Salem State University, is the recipient for 2004. Dr. Martin will be honored during Graduate Commencement on May 14, 2004.

Recent actions of the Commission on Graduate Study & Policies (CGS&P) & University Council

• Changed the requirement of vita as required for ETD to optional.
• Approved guidelines for departments to offer a Bachelor’s/Master’s program option beyond that currently available for Honors students. The approved change is as follows:

     Academic units may petition the Graduate School to combine existing bachelor’s and master’s degree programs into new five-year bachelor/master’s degree (open) programs. These programs would allow undergraduate students with a 3.2 or better GPA and the completion of 75 hours of study to enroll in the Graduate School before completion of their undergraduate requirements.
      Up to 12 hours of graduate coursework may be taken before the completion of the bachelor’s degree. However, a maximum of 6 such hours may be used to satisfy both bachelor’s and master’s degree requirements.

• Reviewed and approved the qualifications required for being the instructor of record for a graduate course. In order to be the instructor of record in a graduate course, one must hold a graduate degree (the terminal degree in the discipline) and cannot be currently enrolled as a graduate student in the same department. Graduate students can be the instructor of record for undergraduate courses and might assist faculty with graduate courses (e.g., providing lectures) but should not be teaching graduate courses.

Independent Study

As you know, Independent Study is a shared responsibility of the faculty and the graduate student and can be set up at the department level. Departments should implement procedures by which the student and faculty come to an agreement about independent study prior to enrollment. Currently, graduate students can enroll in Independent Study without departmental approval. If a department wishes to require prior approval, you can put a departmental block on enrollment in Independent Study.

Graduate School Efforts

• We have modernized the information collected on the paper reference form. Based on the feedback provided we have also included some changes that should make the form more suitable for a wider audience. The new form is available on our website. We are also working with CollegeNet to make the electronic reference letter process more user-friendly. Thanks for your suggestions.
• We continue to work on an automated Admissions Analysis (AA) form. This work should be completed by the end of the semester.

The January 2004 Monthly Memo from the Graduate School continues my commitment to enhanced communications about graduate education at Virginia Tech. I hope that you find this process informative and helpful. The Monthly Memos also appear on the Graduate School’s website. Your feedback and suggestions are always welcomed.

Announcements

• "Transformative Graduate Education" presentation and discussion by K. P. DePauw on Friday, January 30th in McBryde 113 10:15-11:45. Please invite faculty and graduate students to attend.
• Nominations for student awards are requested by January 30, 2004.

Institutional Plan for Graduate Degrees
The ‘03′-04 Institutional Plan for Graduate Degrees (IPGD) was distributed January 12th. We are issuing a call for proposals, via a memo to the deans, for inclusion on the Institutional Plan for Graduate Degrees for ’04-’05. Please contact the college dean for more information about the call and details of the college review process. We anticipate finalizing the “04-’05 IPGD by the end of the semester.

Graduate Education Week March 22-26, 2004

The preliminary schedule is:

Monday afternoon	Proclamation & State of the Graduate School address
Tuesday	GSA Research Symposium and Exposition (all day)
Wednesday	sessions on Preparing the Future Professoriate & Future Professional 5:30 Invited Lecture by B. Whelan, Secretary of Education
Thursday	Awards Banquet (evening, by invitation only)
Friday	Luncheon for Research Exposition winners Graduate School Cookout

We are currently preparing the master calendar of all events to be held during the week and hope that you will sponsor events for graduate students within the department. Please send your events to Monika Gibson so that we can put them on the poster. More information will be forthcoming.
Policies & Procedure Changes 

• Independent Study for graduate students is a shared responsibility for the faculty and the graduate student and therefore, the independent study courses are being set up at the department level and require no approval beyond the department. Departments are responsible for registering students for independent study (if you cannot register an independent study after the "add" deadline, contact the Graduate School, 1-8306). Independent Study courses will remain as a P/F graduate course and will carry the generic title of Independent Study. Independent study should be used as a supplement to the graded graduate courses required on a plan of study.
• GRE scores will no longer be a requirement of the Graduate School. The decision to require GRE scores should reside with the faculty at the department or college level and the Graduate School will support your decision to use GREs (or GMATs, etc.). Until this recent action, GRE scores were still required of international students but not domestic students and thus, our change in policy.
• The University Council approved a revision to the Annual Progress Review process (Presidential Policy #229). Please utilize this policy in developing and implementing departmental guidelines for conducting annual progress reviews for your graduate students. The Graduate School would like to have a copy of your guidelines – please send a copy to Roger Avery by July 1, 2004 (VT Graduate School, 100 Sandy Hall, Mail Code 0325, Blacksburg, VA 24061).
• Graduate certificate guidelines have also been approved and are available for departments wishing to offer graduate certificates. [refer to “Resolutions”]

Graduate School Processing and Procedures Changes
We are continuing to review and revise Graduate School processes and procedures to increase efficiency and effectiveness. These include the following:

• Departments can check the web for action regarding course approval requests. We plan to send regular reminders to department heads so that you will be informed of the status of your course approval requests.
• AA forms – As a matter of routine, AA forms will be issued to the department after the file is considered complete by the Graduate School. The AA form includes the basic information about the applicant. Please note that a complete file for the Graduate School (application, fee, official transcript, TOEFL scores as appropriate, GRE scores if department requires) is different than a complete file for the Department (application, transcripts, TOEFL scores, other test scores [GREs], letters of recommendation, supplemental form, and more). To assist you, we will write the test scores (e.g., GREs, TOEFL) and indicate if the scores are official or self-reported by students directly on the AA form. There are times when you might wish to recommend action on an application prior to having the complete file and to facilitate this, we will issue the AA form upon your request.
• Priority processing – in order to expedite admission decisions, we are implementing a system by which you can specify the timeframe within you wish to make recommendations. The system includes the following components:
  • 24 Hour Requests. If you have a need to receive the AA forms from the Graduate School, or should you need a priority decision to be placed on a student, please contact Angie Webb. Such requests will be processed within 24 hours. Examples are not limited to but would include the following: Student needs acceptance in order to register by deadline. Student needs acceptance in order to put assistantship into Banner by deadlines. Department is interviewing top applicant and needs information. Acceptance needed in order to process international paperwork in certain circumstances.
  • Rush Requests. If you need to have the AA forms within 5 days, please contact Angie Webb. We will process the files and prepare the AA forms within 5 days.
  • Specific deadline requests. Please continue to inform Angie Webb of the dates by which you intend to make decisions and we will work with you to get the files completed in a timely fashion for your review.

  PLEASE NOTE: It is important that you do preliminary screening for those priority applications. You should request priority processing for selected applicants (pre-screened by the department) and not all applications. You can screen for priority applicants by running a pending report for your department (SYRA951) and then sharing the names (ID#s) with us. This will assist us in responding to your requests in a timely fashion. Thanks.

This Monthly Memo from the Graduate School is the outcome of our discussions concerning enhanced communications about graduate education at Tech. Based upon your feedback, I will send the Monthly Memos via email to Department Heads, Graduate Program Directors and Graduate Secretaries and post the memo and all pertinent documents on the Graduate School webpage. Your additional feedback and suggestions are always welcomed.

I’m looking forward to the upcoming December Commencement and encourage each of you to attend and bring other faculty members with you. Commencement is a very special time for our graduates and their family and I hope you will join your colleagues in recognizing our graduates and celebrating their accomplishments. See you there!

Graduate Admissions Guidelines (addendum 1)

As you are aware, a review of race-conscious programs has been underway for the past several months. Several “programs” housed within the Graduate School came under scrutiny: graduate admissions, fee waiver for minority and McNair Scholars, Graduate Preview Weekend, and the ABD Fellows Program. During the summer, I was asked by the Provost to articulate graduate admissions guidelines for the university – those guidelines are attached.

Please note that the graduate admissions guidelines include the factors typically utilized by faculty in making their recommendations for admissions, reinforcing the portfolio approach in identifying those applicants to be admitted to the graduate programs at Virginia Tech. I have been asked to inform you that it is the policy of the university that graduate admissions cannot be based solely upon race/ethnicity. Please use the graduate admissions guidelines in evaluating and recommending admissions.

Cunningham Awards (addendum 2)

The Graduate School has reviewed the existing Cunningham fellows program and solicited your feedback. I am pleased to announce the establishment of the Cunningham Doctoral Scholar Awards. This program is designed to recruit academically well-qualified doctoral students to Virginia Tech. The details are contained in the Cunningham Doctoral Scholar Awards document. I hope you will utilize the scholar awards as part of your recruitment strategy.

eProgress to degree

An important function of the Graduate School is to provide graduate students with information about the milestones in their progress to degree. To this end, we are developing electronic communication strategies between the Graduate School and graduate students and departments. Effective immediately, when the application for degree completion (AFD) is submitted electronically, graduate students will be notified electronically of their individual To-Do List as a progress check. Departments will also be able to check on the progress of their graduate students. In the near future, students will receive regular email messages from the Graduate School. Please encourage your graduate students to apply for degree by the published deadlines. We will provide detailed information on the webpage. You may also contact

Angie Webb via email.

Featured Graduate Student on the Web

Each month the Graduate School will feature a graduate student on our website. The purpose is to allow graduate students to share their insights and stories from a personal perspective. We will maintain an archive of these. Please send us nominations of students you would like to see featured. To read the first interview, visit Featured Graduates.

Deferral and Reconsideration requests

In the past, the Graduate School has allowed applicants to request deferral or reconsideration routinely. This has resulted in numerous requests that involve a great deal of department and Graduate School staff time to process. Effective November 7, 2003, requests for deferral or reconsideration of admissions must come from and be supported by departments. It is my intent to make sure that departmental faculty who wish to defer or reconsider the individuals before reprocessing the applications.

Gentle reminder:

It has been brought to my attention that some departments are sending multiple copies of documents or contacting the Graduate School multiple times for a single request. Please help us out by sending only one copy or making one phone call. We will be able to better serve you if we don’t have to deal with unnecessary duplicates. Thanks.

Banner related items

• Don’t forget to run pending reports as we approach decision-making time for graduate admissions (Banner Report SYRA951)
• You can now print degrees pending and degrees awarded reports (Banner Report SYRB672)
• Nominations for student awards are requested by January 30, 2004. More information about awards and nomination process.

Addendum 1

Graduate Admissions Guidelines

Admission to graduate study is based upon a review by the faculty in the degree-granting unit and is focused on the best fit of the applicant’s ability and interests with the department’s academic programs and faculty. Factors used in the decision-making process can include the following: baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution, undergraduate gpa, undergraduate major, letters of recommendations, academic interest area and match with departmental offerings, availability of faculty advisor, availability of graduate assistantships or fellowships, TOEFL scores for non-native English speakers, GRE or other standardized test scores, relevant previous experiences and social cultural diversity.

Addendum 2

Cunningham Doctoral Scholar Awards

The Cunningham Doctoral Scholar Awards program is designed to recruit academically well-qualified doctoral students to Virginia Tech.

Eligibility:

• Be accepted into a doctoral program at Virginia Tech (preferably from a non-VT master’s or bachelor’s program)
• Have an outstanding academic record and strong academic potential for successful completion of a doctoral degree
• Be nominated by an academic department
• Be a U.S. citizen
• Matching commitment from academic department

Stipend:

• Competitive assistantship stipend for GRA or GTA position (flexible, related to qualifications and academic discipline; work responsibilities defined by department; 9 or 12-month appointments available)
• Tuition scholarship

Duration:

• Up to two years from Graduate School, with minimum departmental matching support equivalent to Graduate School’s commitment

Nomination/Application procedures:

• Academic department submits nomination to the Vice Provost for Graduate
  Studies & Dean of the Graduate School as soon as candidate is identified
• Nominations should include the following information about the student:
  o Name of applicant, VT degree sought, previous university
  o Recommendation letter from department addressing eligibility requirements
• The Graduate School makes decisions about nominees within 2-3 weeks of receiving the nomination. Number of available fellowships is dependent on resources.
• Fifty percent of the awards are expected to be made by February 1; remaining funds are expected to be awarded by March 1.

The purpose of this memo is to share with you the recently revised 2003-2004 Graduate Stipend scale and to clarify the implementation plan.

As you know, students who work as graduate assistants while pursuing graduate degrees provide a valuable service to the University. In the Commonwealth of Virginia, the legislative process provides funding and guidance for the compensation of graduate students on assistantships, and changes in compensation for this group requires action by the University’s Board of Visitors.

During spring 2003, the Graduate School recommended a revision to the stipend scale that was reviewed and approved by the Board of Visitors in March 2003. Anticipating an uncertain fate for state-funded raises for graduate assistants, the new salary scale was used to offer and appoint graduate assistants (GAs, GTAs, GRAs) for Fall 2003. I know that many of you made adjustments in stipend levels using departmental resources to accommodate the new step system that served to increase the compensation for graduate assistants.

On May 1, 2003, Governor Warner signed the 2003 Acts of Assembly, which authorized a 2.25 percent compensation increase for university employees and graduate students on assistantship. Because the current stipend scale was established in March 2003, the Board approved an increase in the graduate stipend scale by 2.25 percent across-the-board effective November 25, 2003. A policy decision was made to automatically implement the new stipend scale across the board (for GA, GTA, GRA) rather than address each graduate student individually. The revised and recently approved stipend scale is attached and is available on the Graduate School’s website.

No action is required by departments to enact the stipend increase effective November 25, 2003. The stipends for all graduate assistants, graduate teaching assistants, and graduate research assistants will be automatically increased across-the-board. All graduate assistants will receive their new pay rate for Payroll 23. The new pay rate will be paid from the same funds utilized for the initial appointment(s) (e.g., E&G source or non-E&G source). Consistent with the Commonwealth’s appropriation process, the University increased the stipend budgets in E&G to provide funding and this E&G funding was included in the 2003-04 Authorized Budget for each college. For more information, contact the appropriate budget officer in the college.

Some questions have been raised about GRAs. These students are included in the stipend increase effective November 25, 2003 and the increase will have to be funded through non-E&G sources (e.g. grant/contract or auxiliary enterprise fund sources) utilized for the initial appointment. I realize that many of you might have already provided stipend increases for the GRAs and I also realize that you could feel that the stipend increase effective November 25, 2003 is an unanticipated encumbrance upon your budget. I hope that you will realize the merit of providing stipend increases in accordance with our policy, especially as we move to increase the overall competitiveness of our stipends. Because future salary scale increases are likely to occur off-cycle for typical graduate student appointments (i.e., in November), we need to anticipate as best as possible the academic-year impact when selecting step levels.

Thank you for your understanding.